Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-24

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A magazine wants to include contributions from its readers for an article called 'The book that influenced me most'.

Write a letter to the editor of the magazine about the book that influenced you most. In your letter

- describe what this book was about
- explain how this book influenced you
- say whether this book would be likely to influence other people

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam

I am wiriting because I would like to share with you my experience about the book that has influenced me most.

The name of the book is Breaking the habit of being yourself. It provides some advice regarding how you can change your mindset, but first, it is important identifiy what is the reason of your behaviours.It was a special gift that I received, because I was facing a difficult process in my life, and this book gave me some tools to turn into a positive situation all my dubts and concerns. Nowadays, I can see every issue like a great opportunity to learn.

Therefore, due to my personal experience, I firmly believe that this book would have a positive influence on everyone who read it. I am completly sure that once this book is read a new version of them will appear. It will be a more positive and stronger version.

I hope that my experience will be a good contribution for your article.

Yours faithfully,

Marcela Llano.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You address all three points: you identify the book, describe its focus on changing one’s mindset, and explain how it helped you respond more positively to difficulties. Your personal example—seeing “every issue like a great opportunity to learn”—supports the influence it had on you. You also give a clear view that it could benefit other readers. However, the description of the book and the reasons it might influence others are quite general; a specific idea or example from the book would make these points more fully developed. The letter is appropriately directed to the editor and includes a suitable closing, so the purpose is clear throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter has a clear progression: you introduce your purpose, describe the book and its effect, then comment on its potential influence and close politely. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages, and linking expressions such as “Therefore” make the relationship between your experience and your opinion clear. The sequence is easy to follow overall. To make the organisation more polished, connect the book’s advice more explicitly to the change you experienced, rather than moving quickly from its general content to your personal circumstances. Also check punctuation around sentence boundaries, as the missing space after “behaviours.” slightly interrupts the flow. Overall, cohesion is effective, though some links could be more precise.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use adequate vocabulary to communicate the topic and your personal response, including “mindset,” “positive,” “opportunity,” and “influence.” These choices make your meaning clear, and phrases such as “a more positive and stronger version” convey the intended outcome. There are, however, some spelling and word-choice inaccuracies, including “wiriting,” “identifiy,” “dubts,” and “completly.” A few expressions are also not fully natural, such as “turn into a positive situation all my doubts and concerns” and “a new version of them will appear.” Aim for more precise collocations and a wider range of vocabulary for describing the book’s ideas and their effects.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including the clause “because I was facing a difficult process in my life” and the conditional idea that the book “would have a positive influence.” Most sentences remain understandable, and the message is not impeded. Some grammatical problems remain, however. In “it is important identifiy what is the reason,” the infinitive structure and embedded question need correction: “it is important to identify the reasons for your behaviour.” The phrase “everyone who read it” also needs a suitable verb form, such as “everyone who reads it.” Review sentence boundaries and punctuation as well, particularly the run-together text after “behaviours.” Greater accuracy in these patterns would strengthen the letter.

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